--Use the balance transfer to buy time -- time to start over and reduce expenditures. Avoid adding to debt or Adam said you will be back in the same predictament.

--Read over the small print. Many deals involve a one-time cost, typically 3 percent of the balance transferred, she said. Make sure you aren't spending more by transferring rather than paying off your current bills.

South Floridians are taking their New Year's resolutions seriously when it comes to debt: Average credit card balances dropped 12 percent in January from a year ago, according to the consumer website CreditKarma.com.

Office Depot was exploring a merger with Staples a year ago, even as Palm Beach County and the state were finalizing a new $5 million package of incentives intended to keep the company's headquarters — and more than 2,000 jobs — in South Florida for years to come, securities...